


By the Fire See the Clock Lit

by Palebluedot



Category: Captain America (Movies)
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Fluff, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Nostalgia, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, a truly unreasonable amount of self-indulgence, could also be interpreted as, you know how people say they want to wrap their favs in blankets and give them cocoa?..yeah.
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-25
Updated: 2016-12-25
Packaged: 2018-09-12 00:44:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9048556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Palebluedot/pseuds/Palebluedot
Summary: “Good thing you've got me here to rescue you, then,” Bucky grins. “It's not Christmas if we don't stuff ourselves silly and stay up way past our bedtimes.”





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [blanketed_in_stars](https://archiveofourown.org/users/blanketed_in_stars/gifts).



> WHOOPS MERRY CHRISTMAS FRIEND ENJOY THE FLUFF

Steam laced with sugar tickles Steve's nose, persuades his eyes to open. Bucky smiles down at him, the tree lights reflected in his eyes like stars turned technicolor. He presses the mug into Steve's hands and settles down beside him on the couch, hooking their ankles together underneath the blanket. “Topped off your cocoa,” he says, and Steve notices he refilled his own mug, too.

“Thanks,” Steve yawns. “Didn't even notice you got up. Must've dozed off for a second.”

“Good thing you've got me here to rescue you, then,” Bucky grins. “It's not Christmas if we don't stuff ourselves silly and stay up way past our bedtimes.”

Steve turns towards Bucky, bathed in amber firelight and backlit by their tree, looking for all the world like the boy who used to sneak Steve peppermints and never slept a wink on Christmas Eve, and he can't quite keep the sadness out of his smile when he says, “No. It wasn't.”

“Hmm?” Bucky hums through his cocoa.

Steve shrugs. “It wasn't Christmas without this. The first few years after I thawed out, I mean.”

Bucky screws up his brow, scandalized. “What, you didn't celebrate?”

“Well, I tried,” Steve sighs, phantom loneliness settling heavy in his chest as he holds a candle up to the shadowed memories. He'll still swear those winters were colder than they used to make them. “Put up a tree, went to a few parties, gave people presents and all, but I was just going through the motions. Wasn't the same without your ugly mug pestering me about staying up with you.”

“It's no fun waiting for Christmas by yourself,” Bucky says, wistful, echoing that old wide-eyed plea that never failed to get Steve to huff and roll out of bed and go keep Bucky company in front of the fireplace. Even these past Christmases, those words kept Steve from sleeping as much as he'd have liked, although he wasn't up to listen for reindeer, didn't have anyone shaking his shoulders to keep him awake.

“It's not,” Steve agrees, and when his hand finds Bucky's, it's warm. “I'm glad it's finally here.”

“Well, we've got a few minutes yet, so don't you quit on me,” Bucky warns, but then he raises Steve's knuckles to his lips, kisses them tender, holds them to his chest, and Steve knows he understood.

“'Course not,” says Steve, swallowing a yawn. “When have I ever?” And Bucky doesn't say anything because there's nothing to say, just rubs his thumb over the flat of Steve's fingers, and Steve sips cocoa and watches the clock on the mantle tick steadfastly towards midnight.

When it chimes, Bucky sets his mug down on the coffee table and takes Steve's face in his hands, because they've another tradition to keep, newer, but no less dear. Bucky kisses him as soft as new-fallen snow, with none of the chill. “Merry Christmas, Rogers,” he whispers against his lips, and because he's there to say it, it _is_.

“Merry Christmas, Buck.”

**Author's Note:**

> Title taken from "Merry Almost Christmas" from A Year With Frog and Toad, a song/musical I love with my whole self and has a central role in my family's Christmas traditions. Whatever holidays you happen to celebrate, I hope you've got something that makes me as happy as ringing in midnight on Christmas to this song with my family makes me.
> 
> Comments are love!


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